I started watching your videos recently. Tonight I am on the Mariana's Pass, winter. With the incredible drone shots! I think the Oscars should have a category for this kind of incredible videography and narration! Thank you for such a beautiful way to spend my winter evenings!
Hello from Queensland Australia. Thanks to all for getting this video made of a beautiful part of the world. I love snow and trains, I experienced my first snow in 2006 whilst in the US. Whilst it snows in southern parts of Australia, it isn't as thick as snow in the US or UK. I want to travel the US via Amtrak. I just got to save up for that 14-hour flight to LA.😊
I am SO thankful to have found your productions. As an old Ozzy who has an interest in both trains and US scenery, you have fulfilled a dream that I will never see firsthand. Thank you so much.
Fantastic series of shots, very dedicated to the cause! As a British enthusiast it's nothing short of hilarious how poorly our main lines over flat land cope when so much as a brief snow shower hits, compared to how the railroad just gets on with it!
I have this video on dvd, and man I’ll tell ya what, it’s a great show! I really appreciate the time and effort that was put into this video. The narration is informative and helps tell the story of the story of the railroad.
No I take it back... THIS (53:30) was the best section of the Empire Builder ride to Chicago. Watching those mountains fade away at 70mph was one of the best views we got
Interesting/informative/entertaining. Excellent photography job enabling viewers to better understand what the orator is describing. Remember the " Singing Breakman " Jimmie Rogers-???🤔.Whom was a genuine break man. Till changing careers to a singing entertainer🎸🎶 ( 1926 thru 1933 . most memorable song the Break man's Blues😭.spent time in that region years ago. Time well spent in such a beautifully mountainous place. Viewing this presentation from the safety zone of my computer room. Along the " Space Coast " of Florida🐊🐊. Wishing viewers/ R.R. employees a safe/healthy/prosperous ( 2024 )🌈🎉😉.
Amazing series. I was sure that you had to snowshoe into some of those spots. Your “radio announcer’s” voice adds to the quality of these outstanding productions.
How do you film these awesome videos in such challenging weather conditions?? Really professionally produced and such a pleasure to watch. Thank you for all of these.
Thank you for watching and taking time to leave a comment! Lugging gear around in the winter and waiting in the cold for a train that sometimes never shows can be challenging but the results are worth it.
@@7ideaproductions I have done some of that, certainly not nearly to the extent and the extremes that you have, but I know what you’re talking about. It’s a huge commitment, it takes lots of research, patience and equipment, and just when I think it can’t get any better you bust out a drone! Really awesome, amazing, work, sir. I have ridden the California Zephyr both ways many times in all seasons and this video, besides being very educational, brought back a lot of memories. 😊
@@7ideaproductions wait really???? I thought this was like, a discovery Channel or history Channel show that someone stole to put on RU-vid! This is AMAZING. I am VERY IMPRESSED and of course love the content!
@VanessaScrillions Wait, seriously? This is just a guy?! I totally thought this was like a Pentrex Video someone put on here, just like you said! So impressed!
Great video as usual! I enjoyed the Montana scenery without freezing my appendages off. Thanks for doing that for me haha. 15:53 I feel like BNSF just phoned in their “heritage” locomotive paint scheme and really missed an opportunity. Their 25th anniversary was very underwhelming. “Yeah uhhhh just put some decals on it….we don’t want to spend too much money on caring. Our pockets are too deep for that. ”
Did you see that tarpaulin came loose on the left hand side of that flat deck car whilst travelling through "Snow Shed 10" ❄ @ "27:31" 😮 thanks for the commentary ❤😊
The trains that have just two or three engines on point makes me jealous, because driving this route in Microsoft Train Simulator, they made the grades such that you might need at least six engines to either pull a train uphill from Java to Summit, or to provide ample dynamic braking on the trip downhill.
Beautifully done, esp when cast to the 65” screen! Tell me, in these wintry conditions do the locomotives need to sand the rails? I figure the heat pressure and friction melt the snow and ice on the rails?
Thank you so much for such professional and informative videos my friend, the filming and narration along with the vast well of knowledge are nothing short of superb. Kind regards tones1957 (New Zealand)
Told ya I'd come back! If I may ask what are you using for video while its pouring snow? I'd assume a Go Pro. Also How did you get to Snowshed 10? I've seen access roads but not sure if they went to the sheds. Very professional and Great production as usual!
Thank you! The camera was a Panasonic AG CX350 inside a storm jacket. You can drive to Shed 10 in the summer months. I parked on Hwy 2 and snowshoed in for the footage you see here.
I was interested in what Drone you are using? I fly a DJI Mini2 but not sure I would ever be confident enough to fly it in the Snow, any issues with the cold and wind? Also, was curious as to the distance you were flying when shooting the Snow Sheds #7 and #6 they seemed to have been quite a distance unless you were flying the drone back towards you. Fantastic video!
Thanks for the reply. I have a Condo in Whitefish and visit often so was very interested in your video as I have been to many of the spots you were documenting. Excellent work! May I ask how many days it takes you to get that amount of footage? How do you know when the trains are running? Is there a lot standing around and waiting? Montana Winters can be brutal. Do you have help in getting the footage. Sorry if I'm asking to many questions I just find your video so interesting and entertaining and of course the images are awesome! @@7ideaproductions
such wonderful scenery. it is not yet possible to travel via train in the snowy parts of my country as of now but soon we are going to get rail link to the snowy northern regions. anyways, i do wish most of the major rail link in USA were double tracks. that really would have helped in running more freight and passenger trains without causing delays due to single track crossovers. USA is a big and rich country. if it wants, it can easily double track on major routes which will benefit the environment a lot. maybe even more than asking every person to switch to electric cars.
It is FAR more economical to use single track as the railroads are doing. You must remember the actual point is to move material from one point to another as cheaply as possible. Double track requires crossovers to move from one track to another. That means two switches (a switch is a major maintenance item) as opposed to one. And maintenance on two tracks instead of one. And two tracks for all the highway crossings at grade. And the electrical equipment to control the warning signals. And twice the amount of rail, ties, spikes, etc. Then there's taxes on the property. And more employees to maintain them. Although there seemed to be a lot of trains in this video, there is actually a lot of time between trains. This track is all CTC (Centralized Traffic Control) so it is easy to have the trains meet each other in the double track sections. The railroads here are not government owned, so the company has to pay for their property. Higher costs for them means higher costs for your products to be shipped, meaning higher costs for the material, meaning more inflation! Take my word for it, if the company would profit by installing more rtack, they'll do it.
@@FHollis-gw4cc Indian Railway network is just 60k Km while US is 250k Km yet almost 70% of all Indian lines are dual track while almost 10% have 3 or more parallel tracks (not counting sidings tracks) you are wrong about crossovers since even single-track needs crossovers at every siding for the trains to pass one another. rather they need more sidings and more cross overs if a lot of trains need to use the same single track in both directions. in dual track, crossovers are ideally needed only at end points where trains have to cross over to come back (that's only an ideal situation, in real life, there are crossovers at regular intervals every 5-10 km).
@@FHollis-gw4cc the single track is the main reason why most freight companies are opting for PCR where sometimes upto 6 locos haul a huge freight train almost 1+ mile in length with DPR (2+3+1) now, instead of running 3 trains with 3x2x3 crew (2 man crew per 8-hour shift x 3 shifts x 3 trains) , one huge PCR trains needs only 2x3 crew (2-man crew x 3 shifts) . already the caboose at the end of the train with a Guard has been replaced by a EOT device. this is how freight companies in USA are saving money. but this leads to the issue where these freight trains don't fit into most of the regular sidings, so it is the passenger trains who get slotted into sidings till the freight train passes by. That is why most American passenger trains, despite having a huge rail network, never run on time.
FRA rules do not require “buffer” cars when oil cans are empty. Sometimes the cars get shuffled at the refinery. The load outs in North Dakota get them back in order. Buffer cars are dedicated hoppers filled with sand.
@@PCBill0622 later in the video he points out an empty oil car train and it had the buffer cars. I’m assuming that they kept it like that since they were going to the Bakken to be filled up?
@@AnontheGOAT I used to drive BNSF train crews in North Dakota. The inbound (empty) crude oil or ethanol trains would sometimes have all their power in the lead and the buffer cars could be anywhere. Other trains would arrive with the proper order: 2-lead locomotives, buffer car, tank cars, buffer car , 1-DP locomotive on rear. The oil load out terminals use contractors, like Watco, to switch the cars though the load outs and the re-assemble the train, then run the air test. When an outbound BNSF crew was called, the train would be ready to go.
While watching this I couldn't help but wonder how you protect your camera equipment from snow. I have tried to railfan in harsh weather conditions such as heavy rain and snow but have never figured out a good way to protect my equipment and lens. Any recommendations or tips would mean a lot!
I use a rain cape fitted specifically for my camera setup. I buy my gear from B&H Photo (no affiliation) and they are really good about what accessories go with the specific cameras I use. My current rig is a Sony Z280 fitted with a Kata rain cape when needed. When using a mirrorless camera, I found Storm Jacket by Vortex Media to be of good quality and easy to use. They have different sizes depending on your camera/lens configuration. Hope this helps. Good luck!
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